Unemployment Scams And Covid-19: How To Identify Scams And Help Protect Against Them

8 tips to help avoid unemployment-benefit scams

If you’re one of the millions of Americans who have lost their jobs due to the coronavirus pandemic, you might seek unemployment benefits to ease the financial pressure. The risk? You could become the victim of an unemployment scam.

Newly idled Americans have filed millions of unemployment claims during the Covid-19 outbreak. Calls to state employment insurance services have at times overwhelmed phone lines and websites. That’s created an opportunity for fraudsters.

How? In some cases, scammers are pretending to represent government entities. Their goals include stealing the claimant’s benefits, money, and personal information to commit crimes such as identity theft and other frauds.

If you’re recently unemployed or know someone who is, it’s smart to learn how to recognize unemployment-benefits scams, how to help protect yourself against such frauds, and where to find official government resources you can trust.

It’s a good idea to never answer suspicious or unsolicited requests for personal data — or share your personal information — if you aren’t sure it’s on an official state website or with legitimate state personnel.

Here are steps you can take to help protect against unemployment scams.

Never open any unsolicited or suspicious communications, whether it’s a text message or an email. Also, never download an attachment that’s unsolicited, even if it looks like it’s from someone you know. Scammers may try to trick you by making messages appear to be legitimate.

Remember to never respond to text messages claiming to be in reference to your unemployment-insurance benefits. State employment services will not reach out to you via text messaging.

Phishing emails sometimes appear legitimate. They may look like they’re from an entity you trust, like your bank. Even so, never click on website links in the email.

Instead, go to the official website — with the “HTTPS” and padlock in the URL bar — to access your account.

Alternatively, we have provided a link below that takes you directly to all of the official state unemployment insurance programs.

Be careful not to visit fraudulent sites that automatically install malware on your computer when you visit them. And this doesn’t just happen on fake sites. Sometimes, legitimate sites have been hacked and may be embedded with malicious code.

One of the best ways to protect against drive-by downloads is to keep your computer’s software updated to help catch these issues.

It can be frustrating trying to apply for unemployment benefits by phone or online. If you’re in financial need, you might be tempted to visit a website that claims it can help you apply for the UI benefits.

Don’t do it. Remember that third parties can’t apply for your benefits. And applying is free. You’ll need to go through your state government’s official website or call the government agency.

Be careful when researching unemployment benefits on the internet. Don’t rely on websites that claim hard-and-fast rules, because different states have different rules. And the rules are changing.

For instance, the federal government is allowing states to amend their laws to provide new unemployment insurance benefit options related to Covid-19. Always go directly to your state’s official unemployment-insurance website.

Never share sensitive information like your Social Security number if you don’t absolutely have to. If you do share, verify that the recipient is an official state representative.

The same is true for banking information, PINs, passwords, and other sensitive personal information. Also, don’t give out your credit card information. State offices won’t ask for this information.

If you receive communications about your unemployment-insurance benefits filing and are asked for money, disregard it. If they claim to be able to help you file your benefits for a fee, disregard. If they claim they’re state government personnel and need a fee to complete your application, disregard. Remember, it’s free to file.

If you fall for a scam or mistakenly download malicious software, your backup will be the security software installed on your computer and other devices. Be sure to update your software regularly so it has the latest security patches. This will help protect your computer and data from malware and other threats.